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what it is
Coca-Cola Consolidated bottles, sells, and delivers Coke products across 14 states and Washington, D.C.
how it gets paid
Last year Coke made $7.2B in revenue. Sparkling soft drinks was the main engine at $3.96B, or 55% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 4.8% last year. The favorable results were primarily due to annual price increases executed earlier in 2025 as well as strong volume performance during the september period.
what just happened
Latest results landed with a 9.9% earnings beat, while third-quarter EPS also rose 24% vs. prior year.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
60/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
19.8x trailing p/e — priced about right
0.6% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
19.0% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 61/100 — average
What they do
Coca-Cola Consolidated bottles, sells, and delivers Coke products across 14 states and Washington, D.C.
This is the biggest Coca-Cola bottler in the U.S., with about 17,000 employees and exclusive territory across 14 states plus D.C. About 85% of its bottle and can volume sold to retail customers is Coca-Cola products. Distribution moat (hard-to-replace delivery network) → getting drinks onto shelves fast → your corner store does not wait around for a new truck route.
How they make money
$7.2B
annual revenue · their business grew +4.8% last year
Sparkling soft drinks
$3.96B
+4.7%
Still beverages
$1.44B
+9.9%
Large store and club channel
$0.94B
+7.0%
Convenience and small format
$0.50B
+7.0%
Other beverages and services
$0.36B
+4.8%
The products that matter
manufactures and distributes soft drinks
Beverage bottling and distribution
$7.2B revenue · 100% of sales
it's the entire $7.2B business, and it grew 4.8% last year. that tells you the story is operating execution, not mix shift.
100% of revenue
Key numbers
$192
18-month target
That is about 24% above the current $154.62 price, so the market still sees upside even after the recent run.
19.0%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit earned on money invested → 19.0% says this bottler turns assets into cash better than many consumer companies.
14.5%
operating margin
Operating margin → profit after running the business → 14.5% gives COKE room to absorb some cost inflation before earnings crack.
$2.4B
share buyback
That single repurchase equals about 18% of the company's roughly $13 billion market cap, which is large enough to reshape per-share math and balance-sheet risk.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 45 / 100
- long-term debt $1439.8B (99% of capital)
- net profit margin 8.6% — keeps 9 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 32% — $0.32 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B++ — return on equity looks solid but long-term debt needs watching.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in COKE 3 years ago → it's now worth $30,940.
The index would have given you $13,920.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Latest results landed with a 9.9% earnings beat, while third-quarter EPS also rose 24% vs. prior year.
Third-quarter revenue increased roughly 7% from a year earlier, helped by annual price increases and solid volume. Sparkling sales rose 4.7%, and Still sales rose 9.9%, which helped offset higher expenses.
$5.3B
revenue
$2.11
eps
39.8%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 24% jump in third-quarter EPS to $1.64 mattered most because it shows price increases flowed through faster than costs.
-
shares of coca-cola consolidated have increased considerably in price in recent months.
-
the company reported favorable comparisons for the third quarter.
-
the top-line advanced roughly 7%, from a year ago.
-
expenses also increased, though earnings per share of $1.64 represented a 24% increase over the year-ago level.
-
the favorable results were primarily due to annual price increases executed earlier in 2025 as well as strong volume performance during the september period.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is margin compression inside a mature bottling business.
high
cost inflation outrunning pricing
a 9.6% net margin is healthy, but not huge. if packaging, labor, or freight rise faster than shelf pricing, profit gets squeezed fast.
even a small margin hit matters when the whole business is one $7.2B beverage engine
high
capital structure pressure
source data shows long-term debt at 99% of capital. whether that figure is timing, classification, or balance-sheet reality, it is too large to ignore.
when leverage dominates the capital base, equity gets less room for error
med
volume softness in core territories
COKE operates across 14 states and d.c. If consumer traffic weakens or retailers get more promotional, a 4.8% growth profile can slow quickly.
slower volume growth would pressure the multiple more than the headline revenue line suggests
with 9.6% net margins and debt shown at 99% of capital, this is a business where modest operating pressure can do outsized damage to equity returns.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
net margin versus 9.6%
this stock can handle moderate sales growth. what it cannot hide is a margin slide in a one-segment business.
calendar
next quarter versus the $2.10 EPS and $1.9B revenue setup
those are the current expectations. a beat matters less than whether margins stay intact.
risk
debt as a percent of capital
the source shows 99%. if that stays elevated, valuation upside has a ceiling.
trend
institutional flow after a huge three-year run
215 buyers versus 217 sellers is close, but net selling says the easy-money phase may be behind you.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
average
momentum score 3 — in human-speak, the stock is trading like a normal stock right now, not a broken one and not a rocket.
risk profile
average
stability score 3 — you are taking a typical level of stock risk, with the balance sheet line doing most of the complicating.
chart momentum
top 20%
technical score 2 — analysts expect above-average price action in the year ahead. in human-speak: the chart still has friends.
earnings predictability
60 / 100
earnings are reasonably readable, but not clockwork. that matters when the whole story rests on execution.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
215 buyers vs. 217 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 35.9M shares.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$125
$259
$155
current price
$192
target midpoint · +24% from current · 3-5yr high: $265 (+70% · 15% ann'l return)
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